Sennacherib

Sennacherib (740 BC-681 BC) was King of Assyria from 705 BC to 681 BC, succeeding Sargon II and preceding Esarhaddon.

Biography
Sennacherib was born in Kalhu, Assyrian Empire in 740 BC, the son of Sargon II and Ra'ima. After his father died in battle in 705 BC, Sennacherib acceded to the throne, and he had to face an Egyptian-inspired uprising in Syria-Palestine and a Babylonian uprising supported by an army of Chaldeans, Arameans, Arabs, and Elamites. In 703 BC, Sennacherib defeated Marduk-apla-iddina II's Babylonian uprising and installed a puppet ruler on the Babylonian throne, and, in 701 BC, he turned to crush the Judean king Hezekiah's uprising. Sidon and Ashkelon were taken by force, while Byblos, Ashdod, Ammon, Moab, and Edom paid tribute without resistance. Sennacherib proceeded to besiege Jerusalem, and, while he was unable to breach the walls or depose Hezekiah, he ensured Judean submission to Assyrian rule once again. In 694 BC, Elam supported another Babylonian uprising, which Sennacherib crushed in 693 BC; Sennacherib then plundered Elam and recaptured Babylon after yet another rebellion in 689 BC. Sennacherib put an end to Babylon's resistance by utterly destroying the city and submerging the mound on which it stood by diverting the canals to its site. Sennacherib went on to campaign against the Medes from 702 to 697 BC, Anatolia from 696 to 695 BC, and in Arabia in 690 BC. He was murdered in 681 BC by his rebellious sons, who were angry that he chose his youngest son, Esarhaddon, to be his successor.